It’s a sight no parent wants to see.
In the aisles of grocery stores and pharmacies, empty shelves where baby formula should be.
It may seem like a nightmare for those simply looking to feed their child, like an impossibility in an advanced country like the U.S. But the baby formula shortage is very, very real.
The U.S. has been struggling through a shortage of baby formula for months. And in recent weeks the problem has hit a fever pitch, becoming a major story across the nation.
So what happened? How did we get here? And, most importantly, what is being done to help increasingly desperate parents?
What happened?
The national baby formula shortage didn’t pop up overnight.
Parents have been dealing with dwindling supplies on shelves for months. Baby formula wasn’t immune to the supply chain disruptions that have impacted all sorts of other products, leaving demand to outpace the ability of grocery stores, pharmacies and other retail outlets to keep it in stock.
But supply chain issues aren’t solely to blame for the current dilemma. They created a difficult situation for parents, but something else pushed it to an all-out calamity.
In February, a recall by manufacturer Abbott Laboratories fanned the flames.
Abbott recalled all of its products made at a Sturgis, Mich., plant — sold under the names Similac, Alimentum and EleCare — after four children were sickened with bacterial infections. Two of the children died.
Abbott claims an internal investigation showed their baby formula was unlikely to blame for the infections. But the recall, and a shutdown of the Michigan plant done in coordination with the recall, further strained the already taxed supply of baby formula.
And the baby formula industry in the U.S. isn’t set up to overcome such a difficult situation.
Due to stringent U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations, formula made in places like Europe is mostly illegal to purchase in the U.S. And even formula from outside the U.S. that does meet FDA guidelines doesn’t usually make its way into the country due to high import taxes on the product that can reach as high as 17%.
So that means most of the baby formula for sale in the U.S. is produced domestically. However, the industry isn’t exactly sprawling.
A handful of companies make almost all the formula. According to a 2011 report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, in 2008 just three manufacturers — Abbott, Mead Johnson and Gerber — accounted for nearly 98% of sales in the U.S.
The reason for that is those three companies have since the mid-1990s been the sole baby formula manufacturers to be awarded federal contracts, the USDA report says.
The USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children is the largest purchaser of baby formula in the country, meaning without being one of the three companies to have a contract with the program succeeding in the baby formula industry is next to impossible.
It also means that when something happens to one of the big three — like the recall and shutdown at Abbott — it’s tough for the rest of the industry to fill the void.
The result has been retailers finding it impossible to keep their shelves stocked.
Eric White, a spokesman for Berks-based Redner’s Markets Inc., said Redner’s, like all retailers, has been trying to order formula without a lot of success.
“We will continue to place orders for product and ask that guests have patience with our store associates during this inconvenience,” he said.
Many retailers have instituted limits on how much formula can be purchased at one time in hopes of giving access to as many families as possible. That includes Redner’s, which has a four-unit limit currently in place.
Why does it matter?
Parents can slowly start introducing infants to solid foods at about 6 months old, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Prior to that, their diet should consist of breast milk or formula.
Dr. Olubunmi Ojikutu, chair of the department of pediatrics at Reading Hospital, said breastfeeding is typically the best option.
“I love and support al parents who choose breastfeeding for as long as they can,” she said. “A lot of parents start breastfeeding but for various reasons don’t continue.”
One of the most common reasons for stopping breastfeeding is mothers returning to work, Ojikutu said.
“Parents worry a lot about how they’re going to be able to continue with the pumping, with feeding the child and continuing their responsibilities with work,” she said.
Other mothers don’t breastfeed for health reasons, which can include:
• An infant has galactosemia.
• The mother has tuberculosis, HIV or T-cell leukemia.
• The mother is taking an antidepressant or long-term prescription mediations.
• The mother has had a breast reduction, breast enhancement or mastectomy.
• The infant has a metabolic disorder.
• The mother suffers from postpartum depression.
Ojikutu said the only safe option to replace breast milk is formula, which contains a specific mix of proteins, glucose, minerals and fluids that an infant needs, and is free of bacteria that could harm the child.
“Formula was designed to mimic breast milk, as much as it can,” Ojikutu said. “It’s sophisticated, complicated, measured food. It’s designed to meet kids’ growing needs.”
Without a sufficient amount of carefully crafted formula or breast milk, an infant runs the risk of having serious health problems, Ojikutu said. A child can develop a nutrient deficiency and lack the amount of calories it needs to grow, including brain growth.
“Basically, it’s starving babies,” Ojikutu said.
What to do if you can’t find formula?
In a situation like the U.S. is facing, parents are likely looking for whatever options they can find to keep their babies fed and healthy.
Ojikutu said some option parents might see on social media or in other untrustworthy media sources are bad ideas.
Ideas like feeding an infant cow’s milk or watering down formula to make it last longer are dangerous, she said. So is trying to make your own formula.
When it comes to cow’s milk, an infant’s body isn’t able to process it, Ojikutu said. Their stomachs can’t handle the proteins and can end up bleeding, she said, or at the very least get bound up.
If formula is diluted, Ojikutu said, infants can suffer from an imbalance of electrolytes.
“That could lead to seizures, to brain swelling, to a visit to the ICU,” Ojikutu said. “It can result in very, very serious complications, including death.”
Ojikutu said having to come up with plans to deal with a formula shortage isn’t something parents typically have to worry about in a developed nation like the U.S. But, unfortunately, it has become an all-to-real situation.
The best way to deal with it, she said, is to encourage any mother who can to breastfeed as much as she is able.
“We’re advocating people giving birth to breastfeed, to do all they can,” she said. “At the very least have it as a backup, get it going so you have it as an option.”
Ojikutu said most hospitals, including Reading Hospital, offer breastfeeding and lactation support services. Experts can even help restart lactation in mothers who have stopped breastfeeding.
Resources in Berks
There are also places where parents in need can find donated breast milk that has been processed to assure its safety. One resource for finding a breast milk bank near you is the Human Milk Banking Association of North America, which has a locator on its website at hmbana.org/find-a-milk-bank.
There are also some organizations that provide formula to families in need, like Lifeline of Berks County Inc. in West Reading.
Stephanie Giles, executive director of Lifeline, said her organization has seen an uptick in request from the community seeking formula.
“We do have formula,” Giles said. “However, it is Similac and, although we have checked the lot number on each can at the Abbott website, clients are worried about using it.
“The formula shortage has made it difficult to consistently provide for our clients, but we are providing formula.”
Giles said she has put out a call for donations of formula and has received small amounts.
The websites findhelp.org and pa211.org have locators to help parents find local organizations that provide baby formula. Parents can also contact their local WIC clinic.
If a family is having trouble finding the formula their infant uses, Ojikutu said in many cases it’s OK to switch to a similar, available formula.
“If you’re using a regular, nonspecialized formula you can use one of the other regular, non-specialized formulas,” she said.
Ojikutu warned that switching formulas can cause adverse effects in some infants, and encouraged parents to discuss formula options with a pediatrician.
Parents are also being asked not to horde formula, instead only purchase enough to last 10 days to two weeks.
What’s being done to fix the shortage?
There are a number of things in motion that could ease the ongoing formula shortage.
Since the recall in February, Abbott has been increasing production at its facility in Ireland and has air shipped millions of cans of formula powder from the plant to the U.S.
And Abbott and the FDA recently reached an agreement to reopen the Michigan plant on June 4. Company officials have said the first batches of formula from the plant should start hitting shelves by June 20.
Through Operation Fly Formula, the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services have been authorized to request U.S. military support to pick up overseas infant formula that meets U.S. health and safety standards so it can get to store shelves faster, according to the USDA.
On Sunday, the first of several shipments of approved formula arrived by military plane in Indianapolis from Europe. About 78,000 pounds of Nestle Health Science Alfamino Infant and Alfamino Junior formula was delivered.
Further shipments of Nestle and Gerber formula were also transported by military planes from Ramstein Air Base in Germany in the days that followed.
The FDA has also agreed to let Kendal Nutricare, a company based in the UK, import some of its baby formula to the U.S. About 2 million cans should be hitting stores sometime next month.
The FDA also is in discussions with other foreign manufacturers and suppliers about importing other baby formulas.
On May 12, the Biden Administration issued a list of other measures happening at the federal level meant to ease the pain of the shortage. They include allowing WIC recipients to use their benefits on a wider array of products and calling on the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general to crack down on price gouging and unfair market practices.
President Joe Biden has also invoked the Defense Production Act, directing suppliers of baby formula ingredients to prioritize delivery to formula manufacturers and control their distribution as necessary.
And Berks County even has a role in the effort to battle the formula shortage, playing home to the nation’s newest formula manufacturing facility.
ByHeart entered the formula market in March, making its product at a factory in Exeter Township. The company is the first new formula manufacturer to be registered with the FDA in more than 15 years.
Company officials have said they have shifted into high gear to address the shortage, operating 24 hours a day seven days a week.
Source: Berkshire mont
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